January, 2011

• 31 January

  Cover Orange: Best game since Cut the Rope?

  

  Last October I called Chillingo’s Cut the Rope the best game since Angry Birds. And it appears the world agreed with me, as evidenced by its current number-three spot on the iTunes Top Paid Apps chart. If you’re looking for the next big thing in Cutesy Physics Puzzlers (or CPPs, as I like to call …

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• 31 January

  RIM sells BlackBerry PlayBook’s business side

  

  BlackBerry’s first tablet targets business types. Research In Motion RIM has taken a lot of flak from CNET and others for its decision to pair the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet with a BlackBerry smartphone (via the BlackBerry Bridge software) to access native e-mail, contacts, and calendar features as well as a 3G data connection. Today, RIM released a video aimed at …

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• 31 January

  LG to demo Optimus 3D in Barcelona

  

  As we speculated last week, LG is indeed going to unveil a 3D smartphone at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Much like the Nintendo 3DS, the LG Optimus 3D won’t require glasses for 3D viewing. LG promises a “complete platform for a one-of-a-kind experience” as well as HDMI and DLNA connections for content sharing, presumably to a 3D-capable …

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• 31 January

  IntoNow for iPhone is like Shazam for the TV

  

  If you’re familiar with Shazam or SoundHound, then you’re already halfway to understanding IntoNow, a new Silicon Valley startup and iPhone app that launched today. Like the music-tagging apps, the new IntoNow app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch uses an algorithm to pattern-match a TV show’s audio output–its sound–to the right show. Unlike SoundHound and Shazam, chances are that …

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• 31 January

  Angry Birds flies into Rio with movie

  

  Good news for Angry Birds fans: a new game in the feathery franchise will flutter our way in March, with a Hollywood twist. Angry Birds Rio will be based on 20th Century Fox’s new animated 3D flick, Rio. Judging by the teaser artwork above, the game will star characters from the film, alongside the angry birds we have come to know, love and regularly fire into …

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• 31 January

  Google hiring Android app experts in new effort to take on the iPhone

  

  Google’s Android Market looks set for a new wave of innovative apps made by… Google itself. The company is recruiting app developers — including software engineers, product managers and user interface specialists — to fuel an expansion in its in-house app activities. Google wants to put small development teams together to make a range of apps and games, citing the …

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• 31 January

  Cell phones in the sky: Airlines that allow mobile use

  

  Few things in air travel are as polarizing as cell phone use on commercial flights. Though many people quake at the thought of being sealed in a metal tube next to a loud talker, others aren’t quite as concerned with peace and quiet. Similarly, while some travelers savor the idea of being out of touch for a few hours, others …

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• 31 January

  Existing Verizon customers get iPhone preorders at 3 a.m. February 3

  

  Existing customers can preorder their iPhone 4s at 3 a.m. February 3. Screenshot by Joe Aimonetti Verizon has updated its iPhone landing page to include a countdown and a message for existing customers to come back to the site, presumably to preorder the iPhone. In true Apple fashion (adding a countdown), when the numbers reach zero, a day that’s been …

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• 31 January

  HTC Thunderbolt to get simultaneous voice, data?

  

  Will the HTC Thunderbolt get simultaneous voice and data? Phandroid Simultaneous voice and data won’t be available on Verizon until this spring, at least that’s the common knowledge shared by the CDMA Development Group. Yet we’ve been hearing rumors over the last several days–from Phandroid and Engadget, for instance–that the Android-powered HTC Thunderbolt will have this functionality on Verizon’s 3G …

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• 31 January

  Comcast closes books on NBC deal

  

  It’s official. Comcast has completed its acquisition of NBC Universal. On Saturday, the cable giant announced that the transaction is complete. Comcast now owns 51 percent of NBC Universal. General Electric still owns 49 percent of the media conglomerate. The new company, which will be called NBC Universal, is valued at $37 billion. The deal was originally announced in December …

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